The beauty of a summer garden is found in its abundance. The welcoming sunshine and needed rain uniting to provide the ideal conditions for growth. Beds become a beautiful, riotous mess even under the watchful eyes of trained gardeners and hundreds of volunteers.
They refuse to follow the rules and color within the lines; instead their reach extends into walkways, obscuring the path.
The eye dances along the woven green tapestries formed by the intertwining stems. Their bold blooms fight for attention and resist being reigned in. These are not flowers to be controlled, to be clipped and tucked into proper arrangements. Rather, these are blossoms of pure, unbridled exuberance.
There are seasons in our lives that are like a summer garden. Times when our moments are filled with new ideas, new experiences, and new relationships. Celebrate the abundance in those seasons. Revel in the new growth. Don’t be concerned when your path is obscured. It will be revealed in time. Don’t worry that the garden bed of your life is becoming too full. There is time enough for pruning later. Do not fret if your mind’s eye has trouble settling on a single bloom. Rather, let it explore the interconnectedness of your sprouting life.
Stand tall among your summer blooms and enjoy the beauty of its abundance.
When we first moved into our home, the 1 acre yard was a motley medley of scraggly grass and tenacious weeds; too wet to mow and too shady for grass to thrive. It was a blank canvas. Slowly, I began to paint, using the medium of small starter plants, tree seedlings obtained from the forestry department, and cuttings and divisions nurtured from friends and neighbors.
I had a vision of a magical woodland retreat, filled with the soft haze of ferns and the subtle flowers of the understory. For years, this image existed only in my head, the reality of small, young plants planted in a vast, weed-strewn yard looked nothing like a garden. I spent hours on the weekends and after work attacking weeds and planting replacements. On days when the weather was prohibitive, I would research plants and growing conditions. I made annual treks to a budget nursery in a nearby town, filling my car to the bursting points with dreams held in the bright green folds of new growth.
But slowly, it emerged. I watched 2 foot bald cypress saplings grow to 30 foot trees. Ferns and hostas spread their roots far and wide under the protective shade of the understory. Hydrangea proudly held their blooms high, as though no longer ashamed of their companions. Colors would come and go throughout the weeks: daylilies, Lenten rose, iris, geraniums, azaleas. Their spectacular shows provided endless variety and interest.
From February through November, I would begin most every day with a walk along the stone path, through the pergolas, and over the boardwalk. Examining the new growth,watching the wildlife, reveling in the beauty of the plants. On the weekends, I would bring my papers to grade out to one of the hammocks to enjoy the breezes through the leaves and the interplay of light and shadow.
In my old life I had a garden.
It was painful to walk away from my plants, nurtured for so many years. I found myself staring at plants around town wistfully, thinking of their counterparts in my yard. As with much of my transition, it was painful, but also freeing. I no longer had to worry about the assaults of deer, the dangers of a last freeze, or the effects of a flood. My weekends were not filled with weeding. My hands no longer frozen from the cold February soil.
But still, I mourned my plants. I purchased a pass to the botanical gardens and promised myself a monthly visit. Now, I walk their perfectly manicured paths and appreciate the beauty created by teams of professionals. The gardens are stunning, but it’s not the same as one created by my own labor. My own dreams.
In my old life I had a garden.
The last few years, my nurturing energies have been turned inwards, helping myself to grow and thrive. I have tried to eliminate the weeds, start new plantings, and encourage growth. I have become my own garden.
I made a mistake last week. We are in the midst of testing season at school which means the daily schedule is put in blender and spit back out. As a result, I ended up with 3 days last week with no lunch period, meaning I had to attempt to eat (two hours past my normal lunch time) while speed-teaching 22 minute classes. The mistake? I packed a high-fiber, voluminous lunch with lots of beans, greens, and cauliflower that my body didn’t like ingesting rapidly and my palate did not enjoy cold.
I’m learning. We have another round of testing this week and I am packing a lower-fiber spread that will be fine if I do not have access to the microwave. My stomach is breathing a sigh of relief.
Black Bean Pasta With Raw Marinara
As a gluten-free gal, I had pretty much given up on ever being able to eat pasta again that wasn’t loaded with simple carbs and entirely devoid of protein. Then I found this hiding on the bottom shelf in a local health food store. I brought it home, a bit dubious that the texture and flavor would be as good as the nutritional profile (17 g carbs and 20 g protein!!!). I mixed up a quick pesto sauce in my food processor, cooked the pasta, and tossed it together. It. Was. Amazing. It felt right in the mouth, tasted great, and filled me up like only protein can.
A few days later, I went back to the store to buy more of the mung bean fettuccine and to pick up the black bean spaghetti. The shelves were empty:( Panicked (I NEEDED this stuff now), I visited my Amazon site. Placed an order. Several days later, I received an email that they were sold out. Not one to give up easily, I found another site that carries the pastas. I received my first order of the black bean spaghetti last week and I am excited to try it in this week’s recipe.
I needed a sauce that would be good cold and I wanted something different than the pesto I used earlier. I decided to try the marinara recipe from here, but I added onion, garlic, and mushrooms. What? I said I had to be able to eat quickly; I never said anything about my breath having to smell nice:) I topped the spaghetti with a vegan “cheese” made of walnuts and nutritional yeast for a little extra yum and a little extra protein.
Pasta. $6 Tomatoes. $3 The look of utter horror on my students’ faces when they see me eating black pasta with red sauce. Priceless.
Baked Zucchini Fries
This is another recipe from Lean, Luscious, and Meatless, my favorite book from childhood that has disappeared from print.
4 zucchini, end cut off and sliced longwise into 1/8″ slices
dip these into a mixture of flax seed (the cookbook uses wheatgerm, but that whole gluten thing gets in the way), garlic powder, paprika, and oregano
Arrange cut side up on a cookie sheet and bake at 450° for 15 minutes. Extra yummy served with tomato sauce.
A bonus of this week’s meal? It’s quick to prepare, leaving me with plenty of time to read Fifty Shades of Grey, a reading assignment from a coworker.
I’ll top this off with some strawberries and a protein shake that can be quickly downed discretely. Here’s to a happier tummy and the last week of testing!
It’s spring break! No Tupperware for me today! My initial (active) plans for today were scuttled by the protestations of my tummy, so I gave in to a day of reading and sunning on the deck.
Lunch today was a BIG salad. First, I prepped by baking some tofu. I made this batch spicy, adding lots of crushed red pepper along with Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute and some smoked paprika. I love to bake it until it is soft on the inside and firm on the exterior.
Asparagus was on sale at Kroger, so of course I stocked up. These were not the usual slender tender stalks of spring, these were large and succulent. These big boys hold up well to grilling, so that’s just what I did with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Then, it was time to put it all together. I started with a base of mixed spring greens and added cucumbers, red onion, red pepper, baby bella mushrooms, tomatoes, avocado, asparagus, pumpkin seeds, and tofu for mine (the boyfriend prefers chicken). This was all topped with my boyfriend’s favorite dressing: garlic, pomegranate seeds, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper all mixed in the blender. We both love these big and satisfying salads.
I decided to search for new books by some of my favorite authors. You can tell by my find (Damned, October 2011), that I don’t do this very often:) Chuck and I are having a glorious day in the sun along with the dog. The cat, as you can see, prefers the shade.
This meal is a true vitamin C bonanza. I think it would offer one protection against scurvy for at least a year or two. In fact, this is the meal Blackbeard’s mum should have made for him before he set off to pillage the seven seas.
Lemon Pepper Pasta
This comes from my first vegetarian cookbook, Lean and Luscious, and Meatless (out of print now, unfortunately). When I first started using this cookbook in high school, I had fallen hard for the low fat, high carb craze. It is funny to see my notes on the pages where I used only nonfat dairy products and shunned even the smallest amount of olive oil, while eating huge quantities of breads and pastas. Fast forward to today, and I rarely eat bread or pasta, mainly because the gluten-free varieties are not very good and full of simple carbs.
This recipe is super easy. I now use spaghetti squash for the pasta, but any sort of spaghetti will do. The amounts are variable; I never bother to measure for this one.
2-3 cups spaghetti of choice, cooked
2 tsp olive oil
3-4 red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, cut into strips
1-2 tbsp grated lemon peel
1/4 tsp pepper
1 cup skim milk
1-2 cups reduced fat sharp cheddar, shredded
Saute peppers in oil for 5 min over medium-high heat. Add lemon and pepper and stir. Reduce heat, add milk, cheese, and pasta and stir until cheese is melted and ingredients are blended.
Roasted Asparagus with Mustard Cream
Sounds oh-la-la, doesn’t it? It’s actually really easy and really good. This one came from my newest cookbook, 125 Gluten-Free Vegetarian Recipes. I made one small adjustment, subbing nonfat Greek yogurt for the sour cream.
Steamed Broccoli
Uhh…broccoli. Steamed. Added a little pepper and leftover lemon juice. ‘Nuff said.
And for dessert…
Citrus, of course!
I am now set to sail the world with only a bit of hardtack to tide me over. Or not, actually.
Lessons From the End of a Marriage 